Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Lately I've been followed by a slew of nursing students. They spend the day with me at work, (in the words of one student's e-mail) trying to "figure out what mental health nurses do all day."So far, every day on which I have been followed by a student has been extremely slow. It's like the opposite of the old superstition about saying "It's really quiet around here."

When I had a nursing student follow me last week, she got to watch me give one injection, return two phone calls, and fax four prescriptions to pharmacies. Over the course of four hours. No wonder she didn't come back after lunch!

Monday, May 9, 2011

I have a love-hate relationship with GoodbyeNurse. He's a good nurse and a much nicer person than I am. But there's also many days when he absolutely drives me up the wall--and I couldn't pinpoint the reason for love nor money. (Insert Freudian theory about transference/countertransference here.)

As with any co-worker, there's always a dynamic of competition that underlies our working relationship. Nothing overt, but it's always there. Consequently it was childishly gratifying when I announced my upcoming vacation and got the following response from the office goddesses:

"But that means we'll have GoodbyeNurse covering for you! I like you better!" the head of the clerical staff wailed.

As usual, I said the first thing that came to mind. "You guys will be fine. Remember, if you kill him, then I have to train a new nurse, and neither of us wants that!"

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